Expression of α-amylase inhibitors in diploid Triticum species

The aim of the work was to characterize the expression of various α-amylase inhibitors (αAIs), well known anti-nutritional compounds, for the development of healthier diploid wheat-based functional foods.     

Modification of Pointing Performance in Altered Gravitational Environments

The Fitts’ law describes a correlation between the time needed to complete basic tasks such as pointing movements and the level of knowledge of the specific target to be reached. While it has been largely proved in normal gravity, very few experiments have been carried out in altered gravitational conditions. In our experiment, four subjects were positioned in front of a panel where round targets were placed along a circumference. They carried out pointing movements towards the targets when these were switched on. The task time was acquired and processed off-line. In all the cases, the performance of each subject have been significantly modified in the altered gravitational environment and, in particular, hypergravity seems to affect motor performance more considerably than microgravity. Even if experiments involving several subjects and more complex tasks have to be carried out in order to confirm our findings, these results show that ergonomics could be strongly affected by the modification of gravity, especially during the first phase of exposure to gravity alteration.     

A set of genetically diverged Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains with markerless deletions of multiple auxotrophic genes

Genome analysis of over 70 Saccharomyces strains revealed the existence of five groups of genetically diverged S. cerevisiae wild‐type isolates, which feature distinct genetic backgrounds and reflect the natural diversity existing among the species. The strains originated from different geographical and ecological niches (Malaysian, West African, North American, Wine/European and Sake) and represent clean, non‐mosaic lineages of S. cerevisiae, meaning that their genomes differ essentially by monomorphic and private SNPs. In this study, one representative strain for each of the five S. cerevisiae clean lineages was selected and mutated for several auxotroph genes by clean markerless deletions, so that all dominant markers remained available for further genetic manipulations. A set of 50 strains was assembled, including eight haploid and two diploid strains for each lineage. These strains carry different combinations of leu2?0, lys2?0, met15?0, ura3?0 and/or ura3?::KanMX‐barcoded deletions with marker configurations resembling that of the BY series, which will allow large‐scale crossing with existing deletion collections. This new set of genetically tractable strains provides a powerful tool kit to explore the impact of natural variation on complex biological processes. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The use of photochemiluminescence for the measurement of the integral antioxidant capacity of baobab products

The number of methods to measure antioxidants in botanicals, foods, nutraceuticals and other dietary supplements are increased considerably in the last 10 years. However most techniques require long experimental times and high costs to determine antioxidant capacity of hydrophilic or lipophilic compound in a food mixture. By means of a photochemiluminescence method, we assessed the Integral Antioxidant Capacity (IAC) which represents the sum of the antioxidant capacity of hydrophilic and lipophilic antioxidants. In this study the IAC of extracts from Adansonia digitatata (i.e. red fiber, fruit pulp and leaves), was assessed in comparison to those deriving from other natural sources of antioxidants (i.e. orange, kiwi, apple and strawberry). When compared, IAC values for the examined product resulted as follows: Adansonia digitata red fibre ? Adansonia digitata fruit pulp ? Adansonia digitata fresh leaves ? Adansonia digitata seeds ? Adansonia digitata radix cuticle ? orange fresh pulp ? strawberry fresh fruit pulp > Adansonia digitata radix > bilberry fresh pulp ? kiwi fruit pulp. Results clearly indicate the interesting antioxidants properties of Adansonia digitata red fibre, in particular the IAC value of baobab red fibre was 66 time higher than that of orange pulp, with value of 1617.3 μmol/g and 24.3 μmol/g, respectively.     

Immune system approaches to intrusion detection – a review

The use of artificial immune systems in intrusion detection is an appealing concept for two reasons. First, the human immune system provides the human body with a high level of protection from invading pathogens, in a robust, self-organised and distributed manner. Second, current techniques used in computer security are not able to cope with the dynamic and increasingly complex nature of computer systems and their security. It is hoped that biologically inspired approaches in this area, including the use of immune-based systems will be able to meet this challenge. Here we review the algorithms used, the development of the systems and the outcome of their implementation. We provide an introduction and analysis of the key developments within this field, in addition to making suggestions for future research.     

Effect of Post-harvest UV-B Irradiation on Polyphenol Profile and Antioxidant Activity in Flesh and Peel of Tomato Fruits

In the present study, the possibility of enhancing phenolic and flavonoid concentration in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) fruits by post-harvest irradiation with UV-B light was assessed. Fruits of the commercial cv Money Maker (MM) and the mutant genotype high pigment-1 (hp-1), constitutively rich in these compounds, were harvested at mature green and turning stages and left to ripen within climatic chambers where they were daily treated with UV-B radiation (1 h, 6.08 kJ/m² day). In control chambers, UV-B radiation was screened by benzophenone-treated polyethylene film. The treatment was generally effective in increasing phenolic, flavonoid and flavonol concentration in both peel and flesh of MM and hp-1 fruits, although in this latter the positive response to UV-B treatment was mainly evident in fruits harvested at mature green stage. Following UV-B treatment, antioxidant activity increased in the peel of both genotypes independently from the harvesting stage and in the flesh of hp-1 fruits harvested at mature green stage. Hydroxycinnamic acids of both genotypes reacted to UV-B treatment differently depending on harvesting stage and tissue localisation, generally showing an increase in the peel of fruits harvested at mature green stage. With few exceptions, UV-B irradiation also induced a higher accumulation of individual flavonoids both in the peel and in the flesh of MM and hp-1 fruits independently from harvesting stage. Based on these results, UV-B irradiation can be considered a promising technique to increase the nutraceutical potential of tomato fruits by non-molecular tools.     

Studying the ability of Fusarium oxysporum and recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae to efficiently cooperate in decomposition and ethanolic fermentation of wheat straw

Fusarium oxysporum F3 alone or in mixed culture with Saccharomyces cerevisiae F12 were used to ferment carbohydrates of wet exploded pre-treated wheat straw (PWS) directly to ethanol. Both microorganisms were first grown aerobically to produce cell mass and thereafter fermented PWS to ethanol under anaerobic conditions. During fermentation, soluble and insoluble carbohydrates were hydrolysed by the lignocellulolytic system of F. oxysporum. Mixed substrate fermentation using PWS and corn cobs (CC) in the ratio 1:2 was used to obtain an enzyme mixture with high cellulolytic and hemicellulolytic activities. Under these conditions, activities as high as 34300, 9100, 326, 24, 169, 27 and 254 U dm⁻³ of xylanase, endoglucanase, ??-glucosidase, arabinofuranosidase, avicelase, feruloyl esterase and acetyl esterase, respectively, were obtained. The replacement of the enzyme production phase of F. oxysporum by the addition of commercially available enzymes Celluclast^® 1.5 L FG and Novozym^® 188 in 3:1 ratio for the treatment of PWS, resulted in a 3-fold increase in the volumetric ethanol productivity without increasing the ethanol production significantly. By direct bioconversion of 110 kg m⁻³ dry matter of PWS, ethanol concentration (4.9 kg m⁻³) and yield (40 g kg⁻¹ of PWS) were similarly obtained by F. oxysporum and the mixed culture, while productivity rates as high as 34 g m⁻³ h⁻¹ and 108 g m⁻³ h⁻¹ were obtained by F. oxysporum and the mixed culture, respectively.